The 'HAFstack' (New budget gaming PC for 2012)

Please answer the stickied "ANSWER THESE QUESTIONS FIRST!" so that we can help you better.

However, I can see issues with the case, PSU, RAM, and video card already.
 
('HAFstack' scrapped.)

1. Use: Gaming, video editing, browsing. Possibly music and graphics later.
2. Budget: ~$700, would like to see alternatives up to ~$900
3. Location: US (Grants Pass, OR)
4. Need the following: PSU, motherboard, CPU, memory, case, dvd-rw drive, ~300-500gb HDD
5. No resuable parts.
6. Possible OC later.
7. Max resolution: 1920x1080
8. Would like to build now.
9. Possible SLI/Crossfire
10. No resuable OS key.

First, this PC will be dedicated to gaming and possibly multi-tasking (audio/video, graphics) later on. This is a system I'm kind of co-building for a relative. This is the first PC he's ever built. I've built one before and had experience with others.

I'd like this to be as mid-high range/future-proof as possible. I doubt he'll want to upgrade a lot or build another soon. That in mind, I'd like to balance budget with performance as closely as possible. Originally his budget was $700, but I'm hoping we can extend that a little more soon, as much as he can afford up to a sub-$1,000 balance. No monitor is needed or peripherals at the moment. Also with this budget, I'll be ignoring the cost of games/other software except Windows 7.

Games: Diablo III, StarCraft II, Skyrim (recommended or higher)

Tax and shipping might be needed in the final price. Little overclocking is required, but optional is great. The monitor is a 24" Dell which gets up to a 1920x1080 resolution.

So here's the current build:

GPU: EVGA GeForce GTX 550 Ti (Fermi)
PSU: OCZ ModXStream Pro 600W
Memory: G.SKILL Value Series 8GB 240-Pin SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10600)
CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K Ivy Bridge 3.4GHz (3.8GHz Turbo)
with Mobo: Gigabyte GA-Z77-D3H LGA 1155 Intel Z77
Case: Corsair Carbide Series 300R Mid-Tower
Storage: WD5000AAKX 500GB SATA III 7200 RPM
Drive: Asus 24xDVD-RW DRW-24B1ST
Thermal: Tuniq TX-2

Price: $906.22 (Over-budget)

Optional

Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus

Additional $19.99
 
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You are missing questions 8 to 10 of the sticky. Please answer them. Also, the PSU and GPU are both terrible choices. I will give alternatives once you answer those three questions. The CPU is also questionable considering the low budget and the rather lukewarm need for overclocking.

EDIT:
Believe the monitor is a 23" Dell which gets up to a 1680x1050 resolution.
Click to expand...
That doesn't sound right: Dell 23" monitors have a resolution of 1920x1080. Did you mean that higher resolution or did you mean a smaller size monitor?
 
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Done. You're probably right about the monitor and thank you for your input thus far. Everything is corrected now.
 
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Zakkson said:
Done. You're probably right about the monitor. Thank you for your input thus far.
Click to expand...

With that said, at that $135 price point, the GTX 550 Ti is just a terrible choice since the significantly faster HD 7770 costs the same price:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102967

The HD 7770 should be fine for D3 and SC2 at high settings with that high resolution. However, medium settings is probably about as high as you can go with Skyrim, that resolution, and the HD 7770.

PSU wise, that PSU is of relatively low quality and performance and is backed by a company with a spotty customer support. I'd recommend this significantly higher quality and cheaper PSU instead:
$63 - Antec NEO ECO 520C 520W PSU

Now, decide now whether or not your fiend will be overclocking. Right now you're paying $70 ($40 extra for the CPU and $30 more for the 3rd party HSF) more for the chance to overclock high. Is the ability to OC high worth that $70 to your friend? Especially considering his low budget?
 
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